Behind schedule, NASA threatens to remove SpaceX from the mission to bring humans to the Moon

SpaceX - Ảnh 1. — Acting NASA Administrator and US Secretary of Transportation, Mr. Sean Duffy - Photo: REUTERS

According to CNN, on October 20, the acting director of NASA and US Secretary of Transportation, Mr. Sean Duffy, caused a stir when he hinted at the possibility that NASA would remove SpaceX from the plan to bring humans back to the Moon.

Speaking on CNBC's Squawk Box, Mr. Duffy frankly said that SpaceX is not meeting the schedule with the Starship lander - the vehicle chosen by NASA from 2021 to take astronauts to the surface of the Moon.

"They keep moving the timeline, while the US is racing with China. I will reopen the contract, creating opportunities for other companies to compete with SpaceX," Mr. Duffy said.

According to CNN, if NASA actually adjusts or cancels the $2.9 billion contract with SpaceX, this will be a major turning point in the Moon exploration strategy that the US has pursued for the past four years.

Starship – still in development – has only made a handful of successful suborbital test flights as of 2025, and has had its fair share of problems during previous launches.

This has space industry officials concerned about the feasibility of relying entirely on Starship, as China is accelerating with the announcement that it will put people on the Moon before 2030.

Artemis III – a mission expected to mark the first human return to the Moon since the Apollo program more than 50 years ago – is now scheduled for mid-2027.

Speaking on the Fox & Friends program, Mr. Duffy confirmed that he is "reopening contracts" with participating parties, including SpaceX and Blue Origin - billionaire Jeff Bezos' company, which is currently assigned to develop the Blue Moon lander for missions after Artemis III such as Artemis V.

NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens said both companies have been asked to submit plans to accelerate lander development by October 29.

At the same time, NASA will invite the entire US commercial space industry to propose plans to accelerate the frequency of lunar missions.

When asked about the possibility of replacing SpaceX, Mr. Duffy did not hesitate to mention Blue Origin as a potential candidate: "Although SpaceX is late, but Blue Origin is ready, the better. We will not depend on one company. We will accelerate progress and win the second space race with China."

Blue Origin later responded to CNN that it was "ready to assist" if selected.

In addition to the two giants mentioned above, NASA also left open the possibility of inviting companies that have not signed contracts before. One potential candidate is Dynetics - an aerospace company based in Alabama, which participated in the bidding with SpaceX and Blue Origin in 2021.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cham-tien-do-nasa-doa-loai-spacex-khoi-su-menh-dua-con-nguoi-len-mat-trang-20251021152034414.htm